INCIDENCE OF ENDEMIC GOITER IN REUNION ISLAND - A SEARCH FOR CAUSATIVE FACTORS

In an epidemiological study carried out in Reunion Island, 1 686 randomized school children aged from 11 to 15 years were examined for goitre by cervical palpation. A detailed questionnaire was fully completed by each child and his parents. The iodine level was measured in 168 urinary samples and in the salt and water consumed in the various places investigated. The overall incidence of goitre was 8.2 percent, rising up to 19.7 percent in the mountainous part of the island. The mean urinary iodine level was 40.2 +/- 2.7-mu-g l/g creatinine (m +/- SEM) and fell to 20.0 +/- 3.7 in the highlands. Water and salt contained little iodine. A significant relationship was noted between the presence of goitre on the one hand and sex, familial incidence of goitre, cassava consumption and distance from the coast on the other hand. This study demonstrates that endemic goitre and iodine deficiency are present in a limited area of Reunion Island.